Trump Says Nvidia Can Sell H200 AI Chips to Approved Customers in China

President Donald Trump said Monday that Nvidia will be allowed to sell its H200 artificial intelligence chips to “approved customers” in China, reversing what had been a de facto ban on such sales and saying the U.S. government will take a 25 percent cut, according to CBS News and NBC News.

In a Truth Social post, Trump said he had told Chinese President Xi Jinping of the decision and that Xi “responded positively.” The sales, he wrote, would proceed “under conditions that allow for continued strong National Security,” and the Commerce Department is finalizing details. Nvidia’s newest Blackwell chip and its upcoming Rubin system are excluded. Trump said the same approach would apply to AMD, Intel and other U.S. chipmakers. The H200 is a generation behind Blackwell, NBC News noted.

The 25 percent share is up from the 15 percent cut announced in August, when the administration said it would grant export licenses to Nvidia and AMD in exchange for a share of China revenue, CBS reported. Over the summer the government also said it would take a 10 percent stake in Intel in exchange for federal grants for chip manufacturing.

Nvidia, which CBS valued at about $4.5 trillion, welcomed the move. Its statement said offering the H200 to commercial customers vetted by Commerce “strikes a thoughtful balance that is great for America.” AMD said the decision “supports high-value domestic jobs.” NBC News said Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang has been lobbying the White House for months, arguing that export rules have backfired by pushing China to build its own chip industry. NBC News reported that Nvidia says it has more than $500 billion in orders for its best chips through next year even before any Chinese buyers, and that its shares rose nearly 3 percent in after-hours trading after the post.

The decision is not settled in Washington. CBS News said members of both parties have supported limits on AI chip exports, on national security grounds and to keep an edge over China. NBC reported that Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska said denying Beijing the chips is “essential to our national security” and joined Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware in introducing the “Safe Chips Act.” Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana said he does not consider Huang “an objective, credible source” on whether to sell chips to China, while Sen. Mike Rounds, a South Dakota Republican, called it a “healthy discussion to have.”

Trump said the sales would proceed under conditions that protect national security, and AMD said the decision “supports high-value domestic jobs,” NBC News reported.

Beijing’s reaction was cautious. At a news conference Tuesday, a Chinese foreign ministry representative called cooperation between the world’s two largest economies essential and mutually beneficial, CBS reported. NBC News noted that it is unclear whether China will allow imports: after Washington approved the older H20 chip, Beijing essentially signaled it did not want them. The announcement comes as relations are thawing, with China accelerating purchases of American soybeans and approving exports of many rare earth minerals to U.S. buyers, NBC said.